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Sallisaw Bank Merging With First National Of Fort Smith

Times Record Staff

The First National Bank of Fort Smith likely will absorb the National Bank of Sallisaw by the first of 2014, parent company First Bank Corp. announced Thursday.

Still subject to regulatory approval and certain other standard conditions, the merger is anticipated to happen the first quarter of 2014. The Oklahoma bank, which has a 22-year affiliation with First Bank Corp., will be called National Bank of Sallisaw, a division of The First National Bank of Fort Smith.

According to the National Bank of Sallisaw website, customers with accounts at the Oklahoma bank can already conduct business at any of the 31 ATMs and 25 full-service branches in western Arkansas and eastern Oklahoma that are now under First Bank Corp. — First National Bank of Fort Smith, Citizens Bank & Trust Co. in Van Buren, First National Bank of Rogers, and Brown-Hiller-Clark & Associates in Fort Smith and Sallisaw. First Bank Corp. has consolidated assets of $1.5 billion.

“We believe this merger will help us operate more efficiently, and allow us to better serve the needs of our customers,” Sam T. Sicard, president and CEO of First Bank Corp., stated in a news release. “We will continue to operate in Roland and Sallisaw, Oklahoma, under the leadership of National Bank of Sallisaw president Michael Neer and direction of a local advisory board.”

Sam T. Sicard, son of the late Samuel M. Sicard, was elected president and CEO of the First National Bank of Fort Smith in August 2011; he previously served as executive vice president of the bank and as a member of the board of directors.

“Our affiliation with First Bank Corp. over the last 22 years has brought a tradition of excellence and community service to the eastern Oklahoma banking market,” stated Michael W. Neer, president of the National Bank of Sallisaw. “This merger will allow us to focus all of our time to serving our customers and community. Our board of directors, employees and daily operations will remain the same, with our focus on continuing to provide the best service possible to our customers. The commitment to strengthening our community will continue.”

The First National Bank of Fort Smith was organized Feb. 29, 1872, as The National Bank of Western Arkansas. A charter was issued by the Comptroller of the Currency on March 22, 1872, authorizing the bank to commence business.

The First National Bank of Fort Smith has 17 branches in Sebastian, Franklin and Benton counties with $1.052 billion in assets as of June 30, a news release states. The National Bank of Sallisaw has three banking locations in Sequoyah County, with $111 million in assets as of June 30.